Rewind:
The year in sports

PHOTO:  Local cross country programs has successful years.

By Sean Patterson

July

Some of the region's top junior golfers turned out to Langdon Farms Golf Club for the AJGA Ping Junior Classic. Cory Prugh of Spokane, Wash., and Allison Hanna of Portland came away winners of the boys and girls competitions, respectively.

A Canby Junior Federal baseball team continued to rack up victories, compiling an 11-1 record early in the month.

The Canby Splash, a 12-and-under "B" softball team, placed fifth at the state tournament in Medford to earn a spot at the regionals competition in Moses Lake, Wash. At regionals later in the month, the girls placed seventh to earn a spot at nationals in Manteca, Calif.

The fields all over Canby were filled to capacity as the State Games of Oregon conducted its annual baseball tournament here. One local team, a Junior Federal entry coached by Jim Davis, won its bracket.

Former North Marion High School pitcher Steve Schrenk got his first taste of the big leagues, pitching the eighth inning for the Philadelphia Phillies in a 21-8 defeat of the Chicago Cubs.

Canby bowler Brian Johnson won the Northwest Junior Masters bowling tournament.
QX  Former Canby football players Ken Naumann and Zach Gerstner played their final high school game, taking the field for the North in the 51st annual Oregon Bowl. The South won 28-7.

A doubleheader sweep of West Linn cliched an American Legion AAA playoff berth for North Marion. The Huskies swept Sandy in a best-of-three series in the first round, then lost to Westview and Madison to get eliminated.

A Canby Federal Midget baseball team won county with a 5-3 defeat of Oregon City in the finals.

A North Marion softball team, the Slammers, placed second at the USSSA state tournament in Aurora. The girls were led by co-MVP Kami
Christopherson.

 Tom Jager, a former Olympic swimmer, spent a day sharing his experiences and techniques with young swimmers at the Canby Swim Center.

August

 Competing at the national 12-and-under "B" softball championships, the Canby Splash lost all four of its games. Still, the girls enjoyed a banner
summer, placing fifth at state and seventh at regionals.

  The Canby Gators swim team put together a solid performance to place third at a large Bend invitational early in the month.

North Marion running back Steve Nanez ended his prep football career in style, rushing for 48 yards and a touchdown and catching two passes for 52 yards in his team's 26-23 victory in the 47th annual Shrine Bowl in Baker City.

  Once again, the Clackamas County Fairgrounds played host to some of the biggest names on the professional rodeo circuit, as the likes of Ty Murray turned out for the annual fair and rodeo. In the end, Herbert Theriot of Poparville, Miss., came away the all-around champion.

Canby sprinter Mike Carpenter, a state champion in the 100 and 200 meters, placed second in the 200 at the Hershey's National Track and Field Championships in Hershey, Pa.

Former Canby pro golfer Brian Henninger, now a Wilsonville resident, enjoyed his highest Fred Meyer Challenge placing ever, teaming with Tim
Herron to finish in a tie for fourth.

September

The season got off to a good start for the Canby High School football team, which beat Benson 34-13 in its season opener. Unfortunately, it would prove to be the Cougars' only victory of the fall.

In a bit of foreshadowing of things to come, the Canby volleyball team won all but one match in a preseason Pacific-8 Conference tournament.

The Canby girls soccer team discovered a new weapon - freshman Stevie Smith. The newcomer kicked off her high school career with a bang, scoring three goals in a 4-2 defeat of McNary.

North Marion cross country runner Erin Gerhardt tuned up for the season with an impressive second-place finish at a 31-runner Molalla Invitational.

Senior Eric Logsdon shattered a Molalla River State Park course record, clocking a 15:48 time to easily win the Canby Invitational cross country
competition. His time broke the 15:57 mark of Marshall's Chris Clancy, set last year.

North Marion quarterback Tucker Brack turned in a nearly perfect performance for the Husky football team. The QB connected on 20 of 25 passes for 195 yards and threw for two touchdowns in his team's 29-21 defeat of Taft.

In a showdown between two of the state's best Class 4A teams, top-ranked South Eugene beat ninth-ranked Canby 3-0 as Nate Jaqua scored two goals.

October

Eric Griffith's second-place run helped the North Marion boys cross country team run away from the competition in action from Champoeg State Park. Meanwhile, Canby runner Eric Logsdon proved he's one of the region's top high school runners, placing third in an elite race in Yakima, Wash.

A key victory over McMinnville put the Canby High School volleyball team in the thick of the hunt for a Pacific-8 Conference volleyball championship.

 World Cup soccer star Tiffeny Milbrett paid a visit to Canby for her "Tiffeny's Tips on Soccer" clinic. Hundreds of young players turned out.

Canby put together a charge for the Pac-8 volleyball title, winning several straight matches to mount an 8-2 record and challenge McMinnville for the league lead. By month's end, the girls had indeed clinched a Pac-8 championship - the program's second in three years.

In a thriller that came down to the wire, the North Marion football team edge crosstown rival Woodburn 29-26 as Adam Kraft scored a late touchdown and intercepted a pass to make a difference.

In a seesaw of a game, Newberg scored the final 20 points in a 42-34 victory over Canby in a Pac-8 football contest. The Cougars would wind up winless in league play for the first time in recent memory.

With two victories late in the month, the Cougars wrapped up third place in the Pac-8 boys soccer race, qualifying for the playoffs.

Braving cold breezes and an occasional shower, the Canby High School boys cross country team took the district by storm, surprising everyone with a team victory at Clackamas Community College. Leading the way was Eric Logsdon, who claimed his second straight individual title with a 5,000-meter time of 15:42.

November

Canby finally met its match at the Class 4A state volleyball tournament, dropping its only two matches in the 16-team event at the Chiles Center. The girls gave St. Mary's a battle in losing 6-15, 10-15, then dropped a 7-15, 4-15 decision to Hermiston.

The North Marion football team assured itself of a winning season when Justin Whitney rushed for 66 yards and a touchdown in a 15-0 shutout of
playoff-bound Stayton in the rain and mud of Husky Stadium.

After finishing as the No. 4 school out of the Pac-8, the Canby girls soccer team was eliminated from the playoffs with a 2-1 loss to Sprague in a
"pigtail" game of the Class 4A playoffs.

Canby runner Eric Logsdon again made school history when he became the Cougars' highest finisher (third) in 13 years at the Class 4A state cross country championships. His efforts helped the team placed 11th at the meet. Also in Eugene that weekend, North Marion enjoyed its best state performance in nearly 30 years by finishing sixth. Leading the way were Alex McGladrey and Eric Griffiths, who were a respective 12th and 17th as individuals.

A two-goal performance by Won Ah Park propelled the Cougars to a 3-2 defeat of Bend in the opening round of the Class 4A soccer playoffs.
The team went on to beat Wilson 2-1 behind goals from Park and Chris Thompson. The team finally met its match in the quarterfinals, losing 3-0 to
eventual state-champion Jesuit.

The Canby Clash, a U-12 boys soccer team, got a goal from Travis Lockwood to wrap up a 1-0 victory over Alameda United in the finals of the
President's Cup soccer finals in Canby. In girls play, the Canby Rebels won the U-14 title with a 2-1 defeat of Portland Alameda Furies.

Canby High School pitching star Joanna Barstad signed a letter of intent to play for the University of Virginia.

Late in the month, Canby runner Eric Logsdon helped the Oregon boys team obliterate Washington in the Nike Border X-C cross country championships, placing third as an individual.

December

After losing two key players to injury, the Canby girls basketball team rebounded to beat Roosevelt behind the 12-point performance of Laura Ivancie. Varsity regulars Kacy Goettel and Mary Birkemeier were hurt in a car accident.

The season got off to a promising start for the North Marion wrestling team, which sported four champions in a home invitational. Justin Willis,
Kyle Russell, Jason Roberts and Zach Martushev all won their respective weights.

Canby's winning tradition at the Lane Community College wrestling invitational continued, as the Cougars went 4-0 and beat Thurston in the finals to win the event for the sixth time in seven years.

Canby's girls showed their depth in beating Tualatin in an early-season Pacific-8 Conference swim meet, winning 94-76 behind the double-win
performances of Lisa Champ and Sarah Anderson.

Canby soccer player Cody Hagler was named to the state's first 4A team for the third straight time.

Eric Logsdon continued his remarkable cross country season, running first seventh at the Foot Locker regionals meet in California and then 20th in the national competition in Florida.

Canby's balance
too much for Putnam

By Sean Patterson

A balanced Canby attack was more than Rex Putnam could handle in the fourth-place game of a 16-team holiday boys basketball tournament last Thursday night at Clackamas High School.

Curt Bryant, Ross Crooks and Brett Fuge all scored 17 points or more and the Cougars shot 54 percent as a team in beating the Kingsmen 67-55.

The win capped a 3-1 tournament showing that evened Canby's season record at 5-5. It also came as the team prepared to open Pacific-8 Conference play against Newberg Tuesday night.

"We did a better job of attacking the basket, of creating good shots for ourselves," Canby coach Dennis Burke said of Thursday's win, Canby's third in the last four games.

"Hopefully, we learned some things from this
tournament. It was just the kind of (showing) we needed heading into league."

Thursday, senior post Crooks hit eight of nine shots to finish with 17 points. Meanwhile, both Fuge and Bryant scored 19 points and Buck Stone chipped in seven.

Canby led 19-15 after one quarter and extended that to 34-26 by halftime. But Putnam made things interesting late in the third period and early in the fourth, going on an 8-0 run that cut the deficit to 43-41 at one point.

Rather than panic, the Cougars instead went on an 8-0 spurt of their own to open up a 51-41 lead midway through the final quarter. Putnam did hit some three-pointers to stay within shouting distance, but the Kingsmen never threatened to tie or take the lead.

A big plus for the Cougars was their 26-14 rebounding advantage and their ability to hit 26 of the 45 shots they took.

"We kind of got off to a slow start, with six turnovers in the first five minutes," Burke said. "Fortunately, we were aggressive offensively and on the glass. When you do that, you open up easy scoring opportunities for yourself."

Canby now embarks on the all-important league season, which opened Tuesday night at home against Newberg and continues with a road game in Dallas this Thursday at 7:15 p.m.

North Marion wins two of three to get second

By James Hill

The North Marion High School boys basketball team won two of three games en route to finishing second at the Seaside Invitational Tournament in Seaside Dec. 29-31.

The Huskies (3-5) won their first two games before finally getting beat by Tillamook in the finals Friday. North Marion played its best game in the second round, when it trounced host Seaside 63-45 to avenge a loss to the
Gulls earlier in the year.

Mark Briant and Ryan Krause played outstanding in the paint for the Huskies. The two posts stand 6 feet, 2 inches and 6-1, respectively, yet outplayed Seaside's posts of Kirk Werner (6-6) and Walter Lewis (6-5). The
Briant/Krause duo combined for 25 points while Werner and Lewis got only 12.

In addition to Briant's 14 points and Krause's 11, North Marion got 13 from Adam Kraft and 12 compliments of Tucker Brack.

North Marion's win avenged a 70-69 loss at Seaside on Dec. 7 when Krause tallied a season-high 31 points. The Huskies' other win came against Myrtle Point, a 65-45 tilt in the
opening round.

In the finals Friday against Tillamook, the Cheesemakers sank two free throws with three seconds to play in slipping by North Marion with a 53-51 win.

Krause had a solid game in defeat, scoring 23 points, and teammate Brack contributed 13 to the cause. But North Marion hopes of a win went by the wayside when Tillamook outscored the Huskies by eight points in the second half.

"We were up six at halftime and just couldn't keep up," North Marion head coach Walt Hamer said. "We were tired. We had gotten booted out of our hotel room and had nowhere to go. Not that that's an excuse. We were just out of it."

This week, the Huskies will travel to Sweet Home Friday for a 7 p.m. game against the other Huskies of the Capital Conference for their league opener.

Girls go 0-3, learn they need consistency
Yes, the North Marion girls basketball team went 0-3 at the Seaside Invitational Tournament, but the experience the Huskies got from it will mean more in the long run than a victory.

North Marion fell 54-39 to Madras on Dec. 29 in the opening game, then lost to Hidden Valley 68-58 (Dec. 30) and to Myrtle Point 61-58 Friday in loser's bracket play. Even though the Huskies dropped to 3-6 on the season, they learned they need to get more consistent as they head into Capital Conference action Friday at Sweet Home (6 p.m.).

"We played much better in the second and third games," said North Marion head coach Dennis Melcher. "We had opening tournament jitters and never really showed up to play in that first game. But each game we played better."

North Marion's best game came on Friday against Myrtle Point. After trailing through most of the game, the Huskies took a one-point lead with four minutes left. However, a miscommunication on a defensive play allowed Myrtle Point an easy score that sealed the win in the final minute.

Kelley Carpenter led North Marion with 17 points, Heather Koenig tallied 16 and point guard Julie Melcher put in 12. Melcher scored 17 points and post Melissa Figini poured in 14 to lead North Marion in its 10-point loss to
Hidden Valley.

The Huskies fell behind by 10 points early and never could get over the hump the rest of the way. Hidden Valley kept scoring easy buckets in the paint that snuffed out North Marion runs.

The 15-point loss to a balanced Madras team in the first-round was a game to forget. North Marion fell behind 18-11 and nothing seemed to work as Melcher tried to get the players into the game.